Aqua Mirages and Magma Flares
by Serexion
Summary: Candace, daughter of Archie, is content with her life and thinks she has everything she could want until one fateful night.  Enter Devlin, son of Maxie.  Problem is in this game, it's dangerous to trust someone and even worse to fall in love with them.


**Title****: Aqua Mirages and Magma Flares**

**Rating****: T for violence, drinking, and implied sex in future chapters.**

**Summary****: Candace, daughter of Archie, is content with her life and thinks she has everything she could want- until one fateful night. Enter Devlin, son of Maxie. Problem is, in this game of cat and mouse, it's dangerous to trust someone and even worse to fall in love with them.**

* * *

**Chapter 1 **

It was a stormy day in Lilycove- rather unusual for the normally sunny city. Even more unusual was the _coldness _of it. It came down in sheets, drenching anyone that was brave enough to go outdoors. Some people walked under umbrellas, bundled up in sweatshirts and such, taking advantage of the excuse not to do housework to get some shopping done. Everyone else was indoors, either watching TV, playing with their Pokemon, or simply staring out the window, wishing that the rain would go away.

One of these such people was Candace Turqiouse, daughter of Team Magma's one and only Archie. Having an all-powerful father who practically ruled the city had its perks, but he couldn't control the weather, and that ment that she, too, would sit indoors most of the day. Her laptop was on the desk in front of her, some sort of spreadsheet on the screen, but she sat with her chin cupped in one hand, staring out the window in front of her desk, brown eyes unfocused. A random strand of black hair falling into her face didn't unfaze her. In fact, she didn't twitch until the door to her office opened and a blond boy walked in and shut the door behind him.

"You look a little lost."

Candace finally looked up, smirking slightly. "Totally. Who am I, where am I, and how did I get here?"

"I dunno." The blond smiled. "_I_ can be whoever and wherever you want me to be."

Candace stood up and walked over to him, stopping about two feet away, hands at her sides. "Joel, you know you're supposed to have my permission to be in here."

Joel tilted his head tot the side. "Do I?"

"No." Candace grinned and turned around, walking toward her desk. An arm wrapped around her waist as Joel came up behind her, pulling her against him.

"How 'bout now?"

"Not quite."

Joel placed the tips of his fingers on her cheek, repositioned himself so she was facing him, and kissed her.

Candace had always enjoyed kissing Joel- she had ever since they started dating six months ago. He was gentle, but he had an edge to his kisses that made her teeth hurt and her toes tingle. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer. He kissed her jawbone, then her neck, and started to work down her (rather low) v-cut shirt.

Her office door burst open again. "Candace, I figu- oops, sorry."

A redhead, a few years older than Candace's seventeen, blushed, obviously not meaning to intrude on what she has walked in on.

"Bye, Courtney."

"Later." Courtney regained her composure and left the room, closing the door behind her.

Candace sighed and buried her face in Joel's Aqua tank top. "What does it take to get a little privacy in this place?"

"A door lock."

"Smartass."

"Yes, but I'm _your_ smartass."

"I can live with that." Candace kissed him again, then sat down on her desk. "Anything new?"

"Na, just Archie wanting me to go to that new club on the East Side and scope it out, something about-"

"You mean Flaming Wok?" Candace crinkled her nose. "That's owned by Magmas, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but they think illegal recruitings going on,so they need a few people to scope it out. Me, Courtney, and Brett are gonna go out with a couple grunts, then figure out what to do next." Joel then cocked his head to the side, looking her up and down. "Wanna come?"

Candace sighed. "If my dad doesn't have anything else planned for me."

"Well, let me know, okay? We leave at nine."

"Alright." Candace wanted to reach over and kiss him again, but the light in his eyes had gone out- Joel wasn't in the mood to kiss, or do much of anything else for that matter. She sighed.

Joel took her by the waist, a little harder than normal. Candace's lips met his and she felt her shirt come up to above her stomach. She lifted her arms and the shirt came off easy, leaving her wearing her black bra. She kissed Joel's neck, occasonally nipping a little bit of skin just for fun.

She suddenly found herself with her back against the wall, arms pinned together over her head, and Joel planting kisses all over. It felt so _nice_ when he did that-

Her cell phone rang.

Joel groaned and let her go as she reached down into her pants pocket and pulled out her phone. She flipped it open after seeing her dad's name on the caller ID.

"Yeah?"

"Can you do me a favor, Candy?"

"Candace, dad, I'm not two anymore."

"Well, anyway, I need you to go to the department store- after it stops raining!- and pick up some things. Can you come down here and get the list?"

"...Yes Be right there." Candace flipped her phone shut and threw an apologetic look at Joel, grabbing her shirt off the floor. "Sorry."

"Yeah, well, shit happens. Just happens to us more than normal."

"Well, I'll make up for it later, 'kay?" She slid her shirt back on and gave him another quick kiss before walking out the door.

* * *

"So, that's her?" 

"Looks like it. She fits the description."

"My father has me tailing a _Barbie_?"

"Well, Barbie's a blond, isn't she?"

Two Magmas- one boy and one girl- sat on top of a rooftop for a random side street department store, both dressed in the of a Red tank top with the Magma emblem and black pants. They had to leave the hoodies behind, or they would stick out like sore thumbs in Aqua territory- even on a roof on the side of a nowhere street. Which was a shame, because although it had cleared up earlier, it was starting to drizzle again, and they were bound to catch a cold.

"So, Devlin, when do think we'll finally catch her?"

"Not yet. We've been after Candace for years, and it's not like Archie doesn't have people tailing her anyway."

"What's that supposed to-"

Devlin pointed to the alley a couple blocks back, where an Aqua security guard was barley visible- wouldn't have been, either, if he hadn't put his bright blue raincoat on.

"Security. Could be the best trained ever, and yet they still slip up."

"I know what you mean, Krystin." Devlin sighed. "But remember, Dad said-"

"Yes, I know, Maxie said _not to get into fights_ and our goal was _to take the target in an inconspicuous location_."

"Which is not an abandoned street in the south of Lilycove."

"Well, what were you thinking?"

"Inside sources say that she might be going on a scoping mission to FW later."

"So we'll take her in the middle of a nightclub, with everyone watching?"

"That's the plan. It'll go off with a bang, don't you think?"

"I swear, Devlin, sometimes you don't _think_."

* * *

Candace whipped around suddenly, sensing someone- or something- watching her. An aqua security guard was trying to hide behind a corner, but made it rather hard due to the bright blue raincoat. She had to tell her dad to have better security if she was going to be tailed all the time. 

She turned back around and continued walking, the rain starting to pick up. Maybe she could call Joel and have him pick her up in his car-

Something fell off the roof above her, hit her in the head, and bounced onto the pavement.

Candace rubbed the spot the object had hit, picked it up, and almost dropped it immediately.

The object was a hard, crystalline one in the shape of the Magma Emblem. She had heard about those. They were given to aquas of high standing when Magmas were about to "take them out", so to speak.

"Oof!"

Candace turned around on her heel to see the guard that was tailing her fall over.

* * *

"That's right, Devlin, get the girl so she DOESN'T go to the club tonight." Krystin hissed, glaring at the redhead as he hit the security guard with a sleeping dart. 

"Oh, she will. Her boyfriend's going, remember?"

"That doesn't mean anything. If she tells Archie-"

"If you were targeted by Aqua, would you tell Maxie so he'd have you pulled off duty?"

Krystin said nothing, but watched the unaware Candace disappear around a corner, into another alley she knew lead to a back entrance to Aqua hideout.

Candace opened and closed the door to the back entrance, heart pounding. She was targeted. She'd have to tell her father. Great. She wasn't going to be let out again, her computer was going to be monitored, and she wouldn't be able able to go to the club with Joel-

But she didn't have to tell her father. She blinked. That was simple enough. Then she wouldn't have to deal with the repercussions of her act. Or, more specifically, _their_ act.

Candace shook her head. Why let them get to her anyway? Its not like they actually had information on her.

And with that untrue but reassuring thought, she went back out the door to the department store.


End file.
